Purpose or Case Report: This poster will review the complexities and challenges of performing CTA on pediatric patients on ECMO and provide practical suggestions for performing these exams.
Methods & Materials: Illustrative case examples and sample calculations will be used to discuss the complexities of these exams including the basics of ECMO and associated altered hemodynamic flow, safety issues with CT table excursion and contrast injection, contrast dosing and scan time, and coordination with critical care providers and perfusionists.
Results: After review of this poster, the reader should have an improved understanding of the unique challenges when performing CTA on pediatric patients on ECMO.
Conclusions: Performing CT angiography on pediatric patients with ECMO can be very challenging. It requires an understanding of the patient’s underlying anatomy and pathology, the flow dynamics of ECMO, as well as coordination with critical care providers and perfusionists to successfully perform these exams.